References
Postpartum depression: combining a mobile application with recititations from the Holy Quran in Indonesia
Abstract
Background/Aims
The incidence of postpartum depression in Indonesia is greater than the global average, and has detrimental effects on mothers, families, society and the country. Mobile applications are widely used to treat postpartum depression, but combining this with readings from the Holy Quran is uncommon in Indonesia. This study aimed to investigate the effect of combining mobile applications with the Holy Quran on postpartum depression symptoms.
Methods
A randomised controlled pre-post-test time series was conducted from June to December 2020, involving 128 pregnant women in their third trimester. The ‘app’ group (64 participants) received the intervention until 2 months postpartum, while the control group (64 participants) received no intervention. The Edinburgh postpartum depression scale, state-trait anxiety inventor, and the Rosenberg self-esteem scale were used to gather data.
Results
Postpartum depression scores in the app group were significantly lower than in the control group. There were no differences in the anxiety or self-esteem scores between the app and control groups. The proportion of depression scores of 10 and above decreased by 25% in the app group and 7.8% in the control group.
Conclusions
Use of a mobile application in combination with the Holy Quran voice may help reduce postpartum depressive symptoms in Indonesia. Maternity nurses and midwives may wish to recommend use of this app to the women they care for, if appropriate.
Postpartum depression can occur until up to 4 weeks after birth (Stewart and Vigod, 2016), and is experienced by 10–20% of postpartum women globally (O'Hara and McCabe, 2013; Bolak Boratav et al, 2016; Sharkey et al, 2016), and 13.5% of postpartum women in southeast Asia (Wang et al, 2021). In Indonesia, 13–26% of postpartum mothers experience postpartum depression (Murwati and Suroso, 2017; Nurbaeti et al, 2018; 2019; Kusuma, 2019).
Postpartum depression not only affects mothers, but can also impact their families, societies and the country as a whole. Postpartum depression causes low quality of life for mothers, and increases the risk of schizophrenia, bipolar and depressive disorder and suicide (Sadat et al, 2014; Chen et al, 2021; Lee et al, 2022). For families, postpartum depression is related to paternal depression, sexual dysfunction and relationship dissatisfaction (Goodman, 2004; Khajehei and Doherty, 2017), and can cause emotional problems in children, and impair their development (Walker et al, 2020; Faisal-Cury et al, 2021). Postpartum depression also leads to social and economic burdens, as mothers and their children require more care (van der Zee-van den Berg et al, 2021).
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